Pipe Bomb Suspect’s Attorneys Say He Has OCD, Autism, in Their Request Not to Detain

The Justice Department said on Dec. 28 that Brian Cole Jr. confessed to authorities.

This courtroom sketch depicts Brian Cole Jr., 30, of Woodbridge, Va., the man accused of planting a pair of pipe bombs outside the headquarters of the Republican and Democratic national parties in Washington on Jan. 5, 2021, being sworn in before U.S. Magistrate Moxila Upadhyaya, at the U.S. District Court in Washington, with U.S. Attorney Charles Jones, seated left, and defense attorney John Shoreman seated center, on Dec. 5, 2025. Dana Verkouteren via AP

The attorneys for Brian Cole Jr., who allegedly planted pipe bombs before the events of Jan. 6, 2021, are asking a court to allow their client to avoid detention before his expected trial.

In a filing on Dec. 30, they said that various factors weighed in favor of releasing Cole. Among them were his lack of criminal history, as well as his diagnosis with obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) and autism spectrum disorder, Level 1.

A resident of Woodbridge, Virginia, Cole has been detained at the Rappahannock Regional Jail and was recently given permission to see mental health professionals. His attorneys also submitted multiple character reference letters with redacted names. One, whose signatory identifies as a business associate of Cole’s father, describes Cole’s “peaceful nature.”

“Over the years of my interactions with him, I have never seen him emotionally angry, upset, or even frustrated,” the letter reads.

Cole is facing decades in prison for allegedly violating federal law related to the attempted use and transportation of an explosive device. His attorneys’ most recent filing came just before an anticipated hearing on Dec. 30 in Washington. It states that Cole has submitted to house arrest and has an ankle monitor, as well as unannounced visits by pre-trial services.

“He has no criminal history, and there is zero evidence to suggest he will flee. Each factor supports release with conditions that will reasonably assure Mr. Cole’s appearance, as well as the safety of the community,” the attorneys said.

The Justice Department has requested pretrial detention for Cole, stating in a court filing on Dec. 28 that he confessed to placing pipe bombs near the headquarters of the Democratic and Republican parties.

“By his own admission, the defendant committed these chilling acts because he was unhappy with the response of political leaders on both sides of the political aisle to questions raised about the results of the 2020 election, and ’something just snapped,'” the filing, quoting Cole, reads.

Cole’s attorneys argued that whether he was guilty was “wholly irrelevant to his bail proceeding.” They also accused the Justice Department of violating a bar on disclosing the existence of confessions. They pointed to Jeanine Pirro, U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia, stating on Facebook that Cole confessed.

Cole allegedly placed the bombs on Jan. 5, 2021, just hours before Congress was set to certify the results of the 2020 presidential election. According to the Justice Department, Cole denied that his actions were directed toward Congress or its proceedings.

“The defendant felt that ’the people up top,‘ including ’people on both sides, public figures,‘ should not ’ignore people’s grievances’ or call them ‘conspiracy theorists,’ ‘bad people,’ ‘Nazis,’ or ‘fascists,’” the government’s brief said. “Instead, ‘if people feel that their votes are like just being thrown away, then ... at the very least someone should address it.’”

In a subsequent filing on Dec. 29, Cole’s attorneys requested a long list of materials, including statements Cole made that were either tape-recorded or summarized in officers’ notes. On Dec. 30, his attorneys said that no property was damaged in relation to the alleged conduct and that no person was harmed.

The hearing is expected nearly five years after the Capitol breach on Jan. 6, 2021, which prompted congressional inquiries, multiple prosecutions under the Biden administration, and the second impeachment of President Donald Trump.

According to an FBI affidavit, Cole’s cell phone data indicated he was in the vicinity of the party offices around the time the bombs were placed on Jan. 5, 2021.

Financial transaction records also showed him purchasing “multiple items consistent with those that were used to manufacture the pipe bombs,” said the FBI special agent, whose name was redacted.

In its Dec. 28 filing, the government said Cole continued to purchase bomb-making materials through mid-2022 and wiped his cell phone nearly 1,000 times.

“There is simply no reason to expect that the defendant, if released pending trial, will conduct himself differently than he has for the past five years,” prosecutors said. “Rather, there are substantial grounds to conclude that the defendant would continue to present an intolerable danger to the community.”

In another filing, Cole’s attorneys indicated the government sought to postpone the detention hearing on Dec. 30 to either Jan. 7 or 8, but that doing so would be illegal.

Cole was arrested at the age of 30 earlier this month. He has been employed by his family’s bail bonding business since he was 14.

One of the character references came from an individual identifying as the property manager for the building where Cole’s family business was a tenant. Another came from someone stating that Cole was his step-grandson.

The former said the charges against Cole “seem totally out of character from the Brian Cole Jr. that I have observed over many years.”

Stacy Robinson contributed to this report.